UK - A new billion-pound fleet of spy planes able to spot the roadside bombs that kill troops in Afghanistan will be out of action... because the RAF has failed to train enough crew...
Each aircraft is operated by a five-man team of two pilots, a mission commander and two imagery analysts. The planes, converted Bombardier passenger jets, have been built by the American firm Raytheon at sites in Texas and near Chester...
An air force spokesman said: “You’ve got to have all five aircraft and all 10 crews ready before you have full operating capability. It could be 2011 but everybody is busting a gut to bring that date forward.” (more)
